


Once Upon a Time

by Oilux



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Gen, Multi, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-09
Updated: 2013-02-23
Packaged: 2017-11-28 16:54:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 6,069
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/676706
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oilux/pseuds/Oilux
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A series of one shots and stories that I have been given prompts for. Feel free to read and then leave your own prompts.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Doctor Whale get's a surprise when Ruby makes the first move and asks him out.

Chapter 1: Doctor Whale get's a surprise when Ruby makes the first move and asks him out.

Being at the hospital was boring enough after the John Doe had hit hook with his car and ended up in the hospital. The hospital had calmed down, and both Belle and John Doe were sleeping peacefully under the care of Doctor Whale.

As he sipped his drink and sat alone in his office, he couldn't help but think of the matter of him and Ruby. He had always thought that Ruby was beautiful, but they had never gotten the chance to talk before.

Whale was almost happy that she had pulled him away from the waters edge and talked him monster to monster. There was still doubt lingering in his mind though.

Drink finished, he reached under his desk and pulled out his bottle of liquor, filling out his glass to it reached the brim and almost overflowed. Right as he brought it to his lips, there was a knock at the door.

"Come in," he said, placing his drink back down on the desk.

Ruby entered his office, looking around cautiously before she sat down on the chair across from him looking almost scared to be there. Whale smiled at her, but she didn't look to reassured.

"What brings you here?" he asked, happy that she had come to see him. He had worried that she wasn't going to talk to him again, but here she showed up on his doorstep.

"Do you want to go and get something to drink sometime?" Ruby asked all in a rush, words almost blurring together.

Whale blinked owlishly at her. He had not expected that, a lot of the women in town just avoided him, talking about him behind his back after he made half attempts to ask them out. Whale had always thought Ruby was just one of those women simply out of his league.

"I would love to."


	2. Whale leaves Ruby a sketch he made while observing her at Granny's.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 2: Whale leaves Ruby a sketch he made while observing her at Granny's.

His fingers moved deftly over the back of the sheet of paper as he waited for the check, that he hoped Ruby would bring but he knew that Granny would bring just so that he didn't ogle her granddaughter, lightly sketching the last details of Ruby. She was currently placing a meal down on the table across the way, giving him the ideal pose for his drawing.

The last details were sketched out, from the buckles on her knees high boots to the wolf necklace that she let hang around her neck. He hardly ever drew, but when he did it had always been of Ruby, and mainly that of her working here in the diner.

"Here's your check," Granny said, almost appearing out of nowhere, and successfully distracting him from what he had been doing. He smiled at the older woman, but just got a harsh stare in return for his troubles.

Whale put enough money on the table for his meal, also making sure to leave a hefty tip for Ruby before he grabbed his briefcase and headed out the door, forgetting one simple piece of paper that had his entire concentration not five minutes ago.

When Ruby went over to the table to collect the money Whale had left and the plates that needed washing, she noticed the single piece of paper. She took it into her hands, looking at the writing in neat print to see if it was important enough for her to have to return to the hospital where Whale worked.

It was the back of the paper that stole her breathe away. There was her, elegantly drawn, placing a plate with a burger on it to a customer that she didn't recognize because of the lack of detail in it. Yet the random person in the picture wasn't what made her almost drop the plates she had been holding.

The detail put into her and every single piece of her outfit was amazing. Though done in pen, the marks flowed together and it looked as if she was going to fall off the paper.

Quickly folding it up, she headed to the back of the kitchen where Granny was waiting for her and the dirty plates.

"Hey Granny maybe when you see this you'l realize that Whale isn't as big of a jerk like you say he is."

That picture done in pen was framed on the wall for all to see, much of Whale's embarrassment. The only good thing for him though, was now when he came in, it was always Ruby who served him and gave him his check.


	3. Going in the Library

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 2: High School AU - RumBelle. Gold is the kind of guy who doesn't belong in the Library.

Gold was not the kind of teenage who was known to go into the Library. He was one that would have gotten beat up every day if he didn't have such great connections all around and was known to have at least one piece of blackmail on every student. He was the boy who walked with a permanent limp because the one and only time that he was ever beaten up was in middle school. The boys who were responsible were never heard from again. No one dared messed with him again.

So as Gold strolled into the Library, Belle French wasn't the only one who stared at him. He waked with squared shoulders and chin held high as he went and asked the Librarian where a book on war for his history class was and went to go and seek it out as she stuttered out the location.

Belle couldn't help but be jealous that she wasn't the one telling him where to go. She had always wanted to talk to him, but she had never gotten a chance. Gold was always surrounded by goonies and other guys who were known to be the bullies of the school.

Gold came out of the back shelves of the Library, a look of impatience crossing his features as he didn't have a book in his hands. Belle ducked her face behind the book she was reading, trying not to make it seem like she was staring at him.

The librarian looked shaken at best, as she frantically looked around at the other students. Eventually her eyes landed on Belle, and the librarian pointed at her. Belle almost dropped her book as Gold started to make his way over to her.

"I need that book," he announced as he finally reached her small desk. Belle's heart beat frantically, but she held her ground, clutching her book tighter.

"I'm reading it right now," Belle told him, meeting his eyes with her own. She had never seen someone with such golden eyes before, they almost looked like honey. She had to force herself not to get lost in them.

"Didn't you hear me dearie? I need that book." Gold held out his hand, obviously expecting her to just hand it over. She gave him a dissatisfied look.

"Well, you are just out of luck then aren't you?" she teased. For a moment, he went stiff, and Belle panicked internally, but then his shoulders sagged and he gave her a half grin.

"I'll give. What do you want?" he asked, eye brow raised. Belle thought for a moment, he would probably give her anything she wanted right now, and surprisingly, her mind was blank. But then she smiled, the perfect idea forming in her mind.

"I'll give you the book, if at every lunch you come and spend it with me and tell me about yourself," she said with a smile.

Gold stared at her for a moment, with the smile and the book held out with him, and he just couldn't resist the small smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

"You have got yourself a deal, dearie."

Maybe Gold could be the kind of guy that goes to the Library, as long as she was there.


	4. Puppy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 4: She wants a puppy (frankenwof)

Whale looked at Ruby with surprise across his features, but it quickly changed into a smile as he turned back to the hospital reports he was reading. Somehow he knew this day was going to come, but she still managed to catch him off guard.

"A puppy? Sure, we could do that," he told her. Ruby beamed at him, running off to go gloat to Snow about how someone was finally letting him get a dog and it was about time she got what she wanted.

Whale would have given her the entire town of Storybrooke if it meant that she would always smile like that. For now though, she wanted a puppy, and so a puppy she would get.

The next day he regretted his words with a passion.

-x-x-x-x-

"That is not a puppy Ruby…" his voice was tense and guarded as he backed up as far as he could in the small room.

Before Ruby was a rather large wolf looking dog. Whale was actually debating in his head if it was a wolf and not a dog, because knowing Ruby she would have found someone online who could ship a wolf to her. The creature before Ruby stared him down, looking entirely comfortable at Ruby's feet but still the most dominate animal in the room.

"What are you talking about? He's not even a year old!" she complained. Ruby had hopped that Whale would be a bit more understanding about her puppy, after all it had taken hours to find just the right puppy and get him over here overnight.

"Are you sure that's even a dog? It looks like a wolf," Whale cautiously said as he moved a bit closer.

"Well…..he might not exactly be a dog," she conceded. Whale gave her a look, but didn't say anything otherwise about her puppy really being a wolf.

Slowly, as Whale got closer to her in an effort to get to know the creature that would most likely be sharing a home with him for the rest of its life, the wolf stood to meet him too. As skin and fur finally touched Whale realized that he wasn't really worried about anything, just how the wolf might react. If anything, the wolf seemed happy getting petted as it sat down before Whale.

"I guess we can keep him," Whale finally conceded. Ruby smiled brightly at him, he couldn't even make himself regret those words.

"His name is Quinn," she almost sang as she threw her apron on and almost ran out the door, leaving Wolf alone with Quinn.

The two looked at each other, wolf to man, before Whale let out another chuckle, reaching down and petting Quinn yet again.

"Whatever she says, you are not a puppy," Whale said to Quinn. Quinn whined, almost seeming to agree with him.


	5. Positive

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 5: A positive pregnancy test (frankenwolf)

Sitting was a chore, noticed as she ran around the diner with more energy than normal. Her smile wasn't there as much, but no one seemed to notice as long as they got their food just as quickly and the light banter Ruby was known for in their small town. Granny could practically smell that something was amiss with the small girl, though she didn't question Ruby for what was going on. As long as her granddaughter did her job well she wasn't about to open another can of words.

Ruby, though she looked calm and collected on the outside, was all about screaming on the inside. She kept glancing at the clock, hoping that granny would be nice tonight and let her off early, but as the hours ticked by she began to lose hope of that prospect.

"Are you alright Red?" Snow asked her when her and Charming came down for lunch. Ruby did her best to smile, but she could see that it didn't fool her best friend.

"Of course! Why wouldn't I?" Ruby's laughter even sounded fake to herself. Yet Snow didn't press the matter, too involved in her date to really interrogate her friend at the moment.

Ruby had wished that her best friend had made her stop and talk to her, so that she could have one person she could tell what was going on through her mind. She felt as if she was running away from a problem that demanded her attention.

Amazing that a single strip of plastic with two pink lines was able to send her into a heart attack. Stress wasn't good for her right now, if she really was going through what the test told her she was. Pregnancy. The simple word almost made her stop in her tracks and reevaluate her life right in the middle of the diner.

Four more tests later, and strange looks from the gas station attendant who was no doubt wondering why she needed so many, Ruby had come to the conclusion that yes, she was indeed pregnant. Only one thing scared her more than telling Granny, and that was telling the baby's father.

Her boyfriend, Doctor Whale as most people knew him but Victor to her, was not the one to have kids. She knew that he had a troubled family, and that she was anything but what a mother should be. For all she knew the child could turn out like her, with a wolf once a month.

Yet right as she was thinking of all the ways to tell him, he walked through the door of the diner, to have a late dinner with her and spend some time together. The way that he smiled at her made almost all of her fears vanish into thin air.

He sat down and Ruby fetched him the usual, which she made the cooks prepare earlier, and plopped down in the seat across from him instead of beside him. Victor raised an eye brow, but otherwise said nothing at her less than normal actions.

"How was your day?" he eventually asked, cutting his steak into small pieces. Ruby smiled slightly at his normal behavior.

"It's good. I got some important news," Ruby said nervously. Victor glanced up from his meal for a moment, before he went back to it.

"What news?" Even she could tell that though he tried to be casual about it, he was really interested in what she was about to say.

Ruby took one deep breath, and then another. Victor seemed to catch onto her nervousness and placed his silverware down, giving Ruby his full attention. Ruby tried to relax, figuring it was no or never.

"I'm pregnant," she blurted. If Victor had been holding his silverware he would have dropped it on cue.

"I…what?" he finally said. Ruby could almost feel her heart drop into her stomach.

"I'm pregnant," she said again, this time, the words coming out in a sorrowful mutter.

For a second there was silence, but then Victor stood, walked over to her and hugged her so tight she thought that she might not be able to breathe. Happiness replaced her confusion, and everything was perfect in the world.

"I'm gonna be a dad," he whispered in her ear, eliciting a joy filled laugh from Ruby.

In one swift motion he picked Ruby up from her seat, twirling her around before placing her back on the ground. He was smiling from ear to ear, happier than Ruby had ever seen him before.

"I'm going to be a dad!" he yelled, gathering all the attention of everyone who hadn't already left for the night. As if it was planned, everyone cheered to them and shouted congratulations from their places. Yet the happiness didn't last very long.

"You're what young lady?" a very grandmotherly voice rang out from behind the counter. Ruby and Victor paused, before they both stared laughing. They still had to tell some people personally.


	6. Presents

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rumpel gets Belle a white fluffy puppy

Rumpelstiltskin hated getting presents. He would spend all of five minutes thinking of what he should get, then proceed to get either the first thing that popped into his head or the first thing that he saw. One year when Henry turned eight apparently all the young boy wanted was some trucks. Rumpel had gotten him one of those Ken dolls that he thought boys liked. Regina kindly explained how those dolls were meant for girls and not boys. So when it came to presents Rumpel thought it would just be best to give out money. That was always a safe bet because then people could get whatever they wanted with it and not have to deal with his crazy presents.

This year though it was different. It wasn't Valentines Day, or a birthday, or even Christmas. Yet Rumpel was suddenly struck by the demanding urge to buy his Belle a present. She had been working her fingers to the bones trying to get the Library up and running, while he simply sat in his shop everyday and listened while she complained about the sheer amount of dust that Regina had allowed to pile up there.

He didn't know what to do at first. Get her a present? With nothing in return for him, except the chance to make her happy. She deserved it, but he couldn't think of one thing that she would want that she didn't already have. He looked all through his store first, maybe looking for a precious stone necklace or earrings, but there was nothing that he could deem worthy of her.

The stores of Storybrooke did not carry anything either. When he thought of Belle he thought of brightness and love and books. She had all the books she could dream of in her Library, and none of the stores had anything that even felt like it could match her.

By the end of his search, there was all of one store left. A store that Rumpel had dreaded going through, but now it seemed as if it would be his only option. With one great sigh he walked into the door and struggled not to gag at the smell that hit his nose. A pet store was not meant to smell like roses, he concluded.

x-x-x-x

Belle came home from the Library exhausted. Half the time there was spent by her sneezing as she cleared as much dust as she could. Even opening the doors and windows didn't seem to air out the room one bit. Even vacuuming didn't make so much of a difference on the dust covered floor. She would have to mop it if vacuuming didn't do the trick.

Rumpel was standing right by the door as she walked in, leaning a bit more on his cane than normal, silently telling her that he had been there for a while. Belle smiled gratefully at him, wrapping him tightly in a hug.

"I have something for you," he almost stuttered out. Belle arched an eyebrow, but silently moved aside, waiting for him to show her what he had. Rumpel moved towards the kitchen, checking one last time that she was behind him before he opened the door.

There was nothing beside's the small puff of white that shot out the door that could have elicited that kind of 'aw' from Belle. Immediately she was on her knees, letting a puppy that could sit in the palm of her hands attempt to jump into her lap. Finally Belle couldn't take anymore failed attempts of jumping and just picked the puppy up, letting it yip and bark excitedly, while she cooed at it.

"Girl or boy?" she asked excitedly. Rumpel smiled down at her, having taken a seat sometime when she was too excited to notice.

"Girl," he answered calmly.

"What's her name?" Belle almost hoped that she was unnamed so that Belle could name her herself.

"Fauna, but she's so young you can rename her," he answered yet again. Belle smiled, the name was perfect.

"It's perfect, thank you so much." Belle almost launched herself into his arms, Fauna still clutched between them. Rumpel laughed when the puppy indignantly barked and squirmed out of her grip to sit on the floor besides her knees.

"I'm happy you like her. I don't know how I would explain to the pet store that I would have to return her," he grumbled. Belle's resounding laugh warmed his heart.

"I wouldn't have let you get rid of her even if you tried."

They kissed, while Fauna sat at Belle's knees and wondered what was going on.


	7. Awkward

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ruby convinces Whale to have dinner with her and Granny

“It’ll be fun!” Ruby said enthusiastically. Whale looked away from her, avoiding her gaze that he was sure was going to look just like a puppy begging for a treat. 

“I’m not sure…” he trailed off, neither confirming nor denying what she was asking of him. Victor knew that she would get him to do anything if she simply looked at him in that way for long enough, and this was one thing that he really didn’t want to do. 

“Please?” Ruby pleaded. Victor pointedly looked away while she attached himself to his shoulder, begging with her movements for him to look at her. 

“It’s going to be awkward,” Victor felt his barriers of resolve crumbling even as he tried to remain strong against her pleading. Finally he looked at her and felt any resistance he had   
initially against the idea crumble at his feet. 

“She doesn’t like me though,” he said as a last ditch attempt. It sounded weak even to his own ears. Victor was sure that he had never fallen so fast on an issue before. People at the hospital thought he was stubborn. Then again, they had never been around when Ruby was asking for something from him. 

“Yes she does! She just needs to get to know you like I have,” Ruby said. Even Victor knew that was a lie, but he couldn’t stop himself from finally agreeing that yes, he would go through it and that yes he would behave himself while he was there. 

“Thank you so much! It’s going to be so much fun you’ll see!” Ruby bounced excitedly before she went off to tell Granny the news. Victor sighed, but he couldn’t stop his smile at the sight of how happy she was. 

-x-x-x-x-

Eight o’clock was a bit late for dinner in Victor’s opinion, but it was the time that Ruby told him to be there and so at eight o’clock he walked up to the door and knocked lightly, almost hoping that no one would be there so that he might have a hope of getting out of this meeting. Then Ruby opened the door and all thoughts of leaving escaped his mind at how beautiful she looked. 

“You made it!” Ruby exclaimed with a smile as she ushered him inside. 

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world,” he answered. 

Ruby led him to the table, where her grandmother was waiting for them both at the table, a bowl full of porridge in front of her. Victor smiled at her, and received a glare in return for his nice gesture. 

“Granny, this is Victor, we’ve been dating for a couple months now,” Ruby announced as if it was the weather. Victor paused, wanting nothing more to walk back out the door. 

“It’s nice to meet you,” he said instead. Granny didn’t say a word to him. 

Oh yes, this wasn’t going to be awkward at all.


	8. Cheating

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Milah is pregnant, but Belle thinks that Gold isn't the father. She confronts him on the subject.

old placed his hand on her stomach once again, relishing in the life that kicked back at him and responded to his touch as if it knew that he was the father of him or her. Milah had asked to keep the gender a secret, and though she knew, she refused to let him know, saying that it should be a surprise and that the only reason that she knew was because she was doing all the shopping and fixing up the nursery with her friend Killian.

He smiled gently, placing a kiss on her stomach while leaving her to rest in peace. She had given him a strained smile, obviously tired from her day’s work, and Gold didn’t mind leaving her be. she would be safe on her own, as she always was. Plus, he was going out to meet his own friend, Belle.

She had been acting strange lately, he thought, as he went out of the house with a skip in his step, and headed straight for the library where she worked. It was the library’s slow day, being a Wednesday and all, so there more than likely wouldn’t be anyone to bug them while they were there. Belle seemed to always want to say something, but never seemed to rack up the courage to speak what she was thinking. Gold was worried that she was over stressing herself over something that really didn’t matter.

“Belle?” he called out as he entered the library. She was behind the counter, waiting for him. A small notebook was clutched in her hands, her knuckles almost going white against the black leather of the binding.

“What’s that?” he didn’t hesitate to ask. She didn’t appear as if she was going to speak first, so he might as well take the first step. She was the one and only person that he could actually call a friend in Storybrooke, and for the first time in a long time, he was determined to keep her.

“It’s my date book,” she answered quietly. Gold stared at her, waiting for her to explain like he knew she would.

“Well, it must be important if you’re holding it like that,” he teased. Belle visibly made herself relax, releasing her book and placing it on the counter.

“How far is Milah along?” she asked suddenly. Gold didn’t think of it too much though, instead just choosing to answer her.

“Six month mark was last week,” he told her. Belle nodded, flipping back in her book.

“Do you remember when you and her argued horribly, and then you had to stay in my spare room for a month?” Belle asked tentatively.

Gold remembered clearly. He couldn’t remember why he and Milah argued, or even why it took him a month to go back and finally try to make amends, and be forgiven. What he did remember though was how nice it was to spend a month with Belle. She was a gracious host and let him complain about everything and anything that happened to him. Belle continued with what she was saying, not waiting for his acknowledgement.

“If I go back six months last week, you know what date I get? I get a date on the month that you were staying in my house,” Belle said quietly. For once, Gold could say that he had no idea what she was getting at.

“What do you mean?” he finally asked. Belle sighed, closing her book and meeting his gaze evenly.

“I don’t think that baby is yours…”

They had argued after that. Gold left in a flurry of rage not half an hour after he arrived there. Maybe he didn’t want to hear what she had to say, but he knew that his baby was his, who else could it be?

Gold walked into his house, not bothering to give any kind of warning, and apologies hanging off the edge of this tongue. Milah wouldn’t get her alone time today, but he was sure that once she heard about what happened, then she would forgive him.

The sight that met his eyes was enough to send him back through the door. Milah, his wife, was engaged in a heavy lip lock with none other than her friend, Killian. Gold felt his heart racing, shock on his features. Then anger replaced the shock, and instead of coughing or doing anything like that, he picked up a lamp and threw it at them. Said lamp hit Killian in the back, breaking the two apart and alerting them to his presence.

“I want you out of here by the end of the week,” he said coldly before he exited out and left them to finish what they had started.

-x-x-x-x-

Belle was still standing and organizing books in the Library when he got back there. She looked shocked that he was there in any case, but still smiled at the fact that he came back, even after she had said what she said.

“You were right. I walked in on something that I obviously shouldn’t have,” Gold said before she could even open her mouth. Belle still smiled at him, already having known that she was right, but she didn’t need to rub it in.

“Why don’t we go get a cup of tea? You can stay with me as long as you like,” she said sweetly.

Gold offered his arm to her, and Belle took it without reservation. Even with anything, he couldn’t help but smile at her.


	9. Sick

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rumpelstiltskin reads to Belle when she gets sick

Coughs and sneezes rang out through the Dark Castle, making Rumpelstiltskin groan in exasperation. He remembered when Bae would get sick in their small cabin they called a home, but it had never been as annoying as right now when Belle was sick. Bae was quiet, who never talked about how worse for wear he was feeling, and Belle was the exact opposite.

She complained, asking for tea and weird snacks in the middle of the night, making Rumpel run around the castle as if he was nothing more than the servant she was meant to be. He currently spun at his wheel, thinking to himself that if he was called down one more time to fetch something totally useless then he would right bout just hand himself over to Regina, it wasn’t worth the time to care for the girl.

“Rum…” he suddenly heard the girl weakly call. Rumpel banged his head down, letting it roughly connect with the wheel of his spinner. He just considered leaving and never returning, making a whole new castle somewhere else.

Then he sighed, picking himself up and teleporting to Belle’s room. The sick girl lay on her bed, face red with a slight fever and nose running with mucus. She was a sight to behold, but Rumpel had seen people on their deathbeds, this sick girl was nothing compared to them.

“What now?” he asked exasperatedly. Simply he just wanted to go and spin more straw into gold, and not have to constantly run around the castle to watch over his servant.

“Will you read to me?” she asked voice hoarse with sickness.

“What?” he asked in shock. He had expected calls for more tea or even more things that she certainly didn’t need but seemed to find comfort in.

“Read to me? Please?” she asked again. He finally conceded, dragging a chair to the side of her bed to sit there. Yet Belle shook her head, scooting over into the bed so that there was enough room for him to sit down, and patted the bed next to herself.

Rumepl stared at her for a moment, as if waiting for verbal conformation, and at the small smile that Belle gave him slowly sat down on the bed next to her. On top of the covers of course, he couldn’t just snuggle down with her. Belle handed him the newest novel she had grown attached to, and he flipped it open to the first page.

“’Of many things I was certain of, but none so certain that I was meant for greatness…’” he read softly, saying each word slowly and carefully, as to not trip over them.

He held back his gasp of surprise when she snuggled into his side, and he somehow managed to hold back sounds when she looped her arm through his and yawned so cutely. He couldn’t remember the last time that someone had touched him as if he was a normal human being, and not a monster to be afraid of with every turn. He kept his words steady and even, even after she fell asleep against his arm and refused to let go.

For the rest of the time while she was sick, Rumpel catered to her as if she was the Queen of the land, and Belle couldn’t figure out what changed. Rumpel on the other hand could not figure out why his heart jumped so when she held him tighter as she dreamed.


	10. Worry

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Rumplestiltskin tries making a deal, the person manages to upset Belle.

People always knew that if you wanted to make a deal with Rumpelstiltskin in Storybrooke you went to his shop, never his home. Said rule only applied of course, if you actually valued your life and didn’t wish to see it ripped from your very bones. Very few people actually would go and see Rumpelstiltskin when he was relaxing at home, some of those people being Regina, and the notorious Charming family. Rumpelstiltskin almost always made deals with them if they were brace enough to come to his house, mostly because when they came and visited him then, they were way to desperate to think about the consequences of what they agreed to.

Tonight, Belle and Rumpelstiltskin were lounging in the living room, bellies full of the meal Belle made, and the television showing a television show that blared on and on about some random thing that happened recently in New York. The couple snuggled together, enjoying the calamity of Storybrooke while it lasted.

The doorbell suddenly rung, bringing the two out of their nice reprieve. Belle groaned, knowing that it was most likely business that would keep Rumpelstiltskin away from her, while Rumpelstiltskin simply gave her a small smile. He rose, grabbing his cane and promising that whoever it was, he would send them away. Belle smiled at him, and Rumpelstiltskin limped into the hallway where the door was.

The opened door revealed Regina. Rumpelstiltskin groaned internally, knowing that he wouldn’t be able to send her away right away. She stared piercingly at him, looking as if she would melt him away on the spot if she could.

“What do you want Regina?” he asked, closing the door just a bit more so that she wouldn’t be able to enter. Regina missed nothing, narrowing her eyes at the man’s actions.

“I need to get rid of the nuisance of this town. Do something about them,” Regina ordered.

“I see you still retain the regal attitude of a Queen. Didn’t they have to drive you out of town?” he teased, his face serious. He smirked though when her face pinched.

“Get rid of them,” she ordered again.

“I am not doing anything right now, and I’m going to have to ask you to leave my property,” Rumpelstiltskin replied. He wanted to go and sit with Belle, his knee was aching and Regina was spoiling the night.

“Why? So you can have time with your servant?” Regina taunted, “You hear what the town says, they still think that she’s crazy for being with the Beast in so many tales.”

This time Rumpelstiltskin’s face pinched in distaste at her words. He had heard about the rumors, curtsey of Ruby who gossiped to him as if he was just another customer. Belle though, had been thankfully spared from hearing about them just yet, and he would like to keep it that way.

“Find your own way to rid the Charming’s from your ‘happy ending’,” he uttered before slamming the door. He could almost hear the shock that radiated off of her.

Rumpelstiltskin walked back into the living room where Belle was no longer sitting but now standing, arms crossed and features disturbed by hurt. Rumpelstiltskin almost sighed at the sight of the crease in her brow, chiding himself that she would have been listening to his conversation.

“Don’t listen to her, the people here have too much time on their hands, they would talk about anyone if they had the chance,” Rumpelstiltskin said before she could even utter a word. Belle still looked worried, but it was less than before.

“It’s not me I’m worried about Rum. Why do they always have to talk about you like that?” Belle asked him. Rumpelstiltskin blinked owlishly at her, processing that she wasn’t upset because people in town were talking about him, not her.

“Not everyone gets to see the calm side of the Beast darling,” he explained, gently coming over and embracing her. She melted into his touch, worry melting away.

“I could say that you’re not a monster, but I think that you’ve heard that enough from me,” Belle laughed into his shoulder. “It’s just time that other people begin to see it too.”


End file.
